This article was originally published in the April 2022 issue of "Weapons" magazine, and this reprint has been re-improved, edited, and supplemented with some illustrations to share with friends. Personally, I think that "Weapons" magazine is a professional and objective military magazine, and it is recommended to subscribe continuously to enrich one's military and political knowledge. In the process of digitizing and preserving the "Weapons" at home, some of the older articles on it are reprinted, mainly to allow readers to examine the things and opinions of the past from a more unique perspective.
On December 15, 2021, officials and military generals of the South Korean Ministry of National Defense went to the headquarters of SNT Power Group in Busan, the largest gun factory in South Korea, and signed for the newly developed K16 series 7.62mm machine gun from the factory. The representative of Party A also conducted an experience shooting at the scene and observed the effect of the machine gun night vision device. However, it remains to be verified whether the Korean-made machine gun, which has been in service for more than 30 years, has tormented several generations of ROK officers and soldiers, and has a very poor reputation for quality, can get rid of the image of "a piece of scrap metal."
South Korean Defense Ministry officials and military generals went to SNT Power Group to sign for the K16 series machine guns
One shot on top of three shots
The 124.2 billion won ($104 million) purchase contract for the South Korean military includes the K16 light machine gun, the K16D combat vehicle side-by-side machine gun and the K16E door machine gun, as well as supporting thermal imagers and white light sights. Prior to this, the South Korean army had just begun to purchase and install a 5.56 mm K15 light machine gun developed by the same manufacturer. According to the ROK military, the total number of K16 and K15 machine guns purchased is likely to be close to or exceed 50,000 units, and will continue to dominate the team weapons pattern of the ROK army in the next 30 years.
South Korean 5.56 mm K15 light machine gun.
The K16 machine gun was originally an ambitious "one gun, multiple platforms" program. The original design was a highly versatile multi-purpose machine gun. According to this assumption, the machine guns of infantry squads, vehicle-mounted machine guns, carrier-based machine guns, and door machine guns of all units of the ROK army can be completely interchangeable with only a slight adjustment in configuration.
In 2009, SNT Power unveiled a 7.62mm machine gun model codenamed K12 for the first time at the ADEX Defense Show. On July 29, 2010, the first prototype of the K12 machine gun completed various performance tests, and in 2012, South Korea's self-developed KUH-1 helicopter began to be equipped with a K12 machine gun on the door mount.
A KUH-1 helicopter with a machine gun mounted on a hatch mount
The aviation machine gun was slightly modified by the SNT Power Group as a prototype scheme for the 7.62 mm machine gun for infantry squads. In 2016, the South Korean Ministry of National Defense received a proposal from the factory to use this machine gun to carry out large-scale refitting of infantry, armored troops, and naval units, and eliminate tens of thousands of M60 series machine guns that have reached their old age, as well as the K3 series machine guns that have accumulated many shortcomings.
South Korean Marines train on live fire from M60 machine guns
However, due to the shortcomings of the K12 machine gun such as excessive weight and overlapping functions, it was judged as "unqualified" in the evaluation of the South Korean Ministry of Defense in 2018. Then, in May 2019, the Indian military launched an international procurement of 16,400 7.62mm machine guns, and the South Korean K12 machine gun was defeated by the lightweight and durable Israeli Negev machine gun due to its lack of strength.
As a result, SNT abandoned the initial idea of "one gun on top of three guns" and redivided the sub-models into K12 basic type, Kl2C1 parallel machine gun type and K12C2 infantry machine gun type. From December 2019 to August 2020, the ten sample guns fired more than 46,000 rounds each, and passed environmental tests, reliability and life tests, and drop tests in cold areas, high temperatures, and sediment. The plant is also working with combat units to improve applicability and operability for use in K1 main battle tanks, Chinook helicopters, and naval vessels to gather feedback from South Korean officers and soldiers.
Israeli Negev machine gun
This twist and turn caused the South Korean military to delay for four years in vain. It was not until June 2021 that SNT Power's domestically produced 7.62mm machine gun was finally recognized by the South Korean Defense Acquisition Program Administration, and the two parties signed the "7.62mm Machine Gun-II Procurement Contract", and the K12 series was renamed the K16 series machine gun.
According to the new plan, the basic K16 will be used as squad firepower for melee support and suppression of enemy exposed targets. The K16E side-by-side machine gun is mounted on tanks alongside the main gun as an auxiliary weapon for mechanized units in close combat, while the K16D machine gun is mounted on tanks, armored vehicles, helicopters, ships, etc., for suppression and self-defense.
This is the first time in 30 years that the three armed forces of South Korea have touched a new machine gun, and the chief engineer of SNT Power described this purchase as "the first of its kind in South Korea".
Unreliable No. 1 gun factory
South Korea's self-developed warplanes, tanks and self-propelled guns are competitive around the world, but South Korea's light weapons are an alternative that has been repeatedly complained about. Almost all the R&D and production of firearms in service in the South Korean army are firmly controlled by the same company, South Korea's SNT Power Group, and the K3 light machine gun produced by the factory is named "bolt machine gun" because of its high failure rate.
The South Korean K3 light machine gun, which was put into service in 1989, was used to replace the M60 machine gun.
SNT Power was formerly known as the Busan Arsenal under the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Korea. It has served as a repair shop since the beginning of the Korean War, refurbishing M-series firearms for South Korean and American troops. The early R&D capacity of this gun factory was very limited, and the main parts of the M1911A1 pistols processed and repaired were basically not interchangeable. After 1970, the 300,000 M1 rifles, M1 carbines, and M1919 light machine guns of the US-aided ROK army generally deteriorated, and no matter how hard they tried to renovate, it was difficult to cope with combat readiness. Park Chung-hee, then president of South Korea, began to consider domestic firearms and gave high priority to the Busan Arsenal. With the support of the top military and political leaders, the factory introduced American-made weapons production lines such as the American M16A1 automatic rifle and the M60 general-purpose machine gun.
For this reason, Park Chung-hee specially inscribed the Busan Arsenal with the words "Precision Soldiers" and "Soldier Banban (the first place to build guns)", and erected a stone at the entrance of the factory to show his appreciation. In 1981, the Busan Arsenal was merged by the Daewoo Group and became Daewoo Seiko Corporation, which specializes in the research and development of small arms. South Korea's light weapons have also ended the stage of full imitation M series and started the exploration of self-developed K series firearms.
After 2006, Daewoo Seiko adjusted to SNT Daewoo/SNT Power again, and successively developed its own K1 submachine gun, K2 series assault rifle, K3 light machine gun, K5 pistol and K7 submachine gun, and also imitated K4 grenade launcher (imitation MK19) and K6 heavy machine gun (imitation M2HB), and the product line covered almost all light weapons of the infantry squad of the South Korean army. After several expansions and integrations, the plant now has 400 technicians and more than 23,000 square meters of R&D and production facilities.
The ROK Army is armed with SNT-powered K2 heavy machine guns modeled after the American-made M6HB
Technicians of the subordinate plant of SNT Power are inspecting a platoon of K2C1 assault rifles
Over the past 40 years, SNT Power/Big Character Seiko has produced a total of 1.1 million M-series firearms, and the total output of self-developed K-series firearms has exceeded 1.3 million, with an average annual output of an astonishing 60,000 guns. As the only military gun factory in South Korea, the company has completely lacked enthusiasm for listening to the feedback of the troops, improving the technology of firearms, and improving reliability, so it has also led to the distribution of machine guns to the troops for 30 years, exposing a wide range of quality problems.
The K3 light machine gun is a 5.56mm light machine gun developed by Daewoo Seiko with reference to the Minimi machine gun (very early version). The K3 LMG has a chain and magazine feed function, and the stock, trigger, grip and handguard are interchangeable with the K2 rifle of the ROK Army. Since 1990, the K3 light machine gun has entered the infantry squad of the South Korean army, replacing the heavy and inconvenient M60 machine gun in large numbers, and has also been erected on armored vehicles as a vehicle-mounted self-defense weapon.
However, the appearance of this machine gun resembles the American M249 machine gun, but it cannot be compared with the original at all, the steel has poor strength, easy to wear, and the failure rate of the whole gun is ridiculously high. South Korean officers and men complained that every time a machine gun was tested and fired three or four bursts, it would encounter a malfunction, and the machine gunners needed to be refueled frequently for maintenance. Bring a few cans of WD-40 lubricant with the gun, and wipe the gun repeatedly until your hands are blistered. Most companies have only one-fifth of their LMG working properly, and some infantry companies can only find 1 or 2 LMG guns that shoot smoothly. In the artillery unit, the K77 light machine gun used for self-defense on the K3 armored command vehicle, an artillery battalion often has only one gun that can fire normally, and it is necessary to go to a friendly artillery company to borrow a gun during training.
In addition, the machine gunner of the K3 light machine gun also encountered a rare phenomenon of "autonomous fire", that is, after releasing the trigger, the machine gun still fired, and it was necessary to urgently open the ammunition supply machine and tear off the chain to force a ceasefire. In order to ensure training, some teams abandoned the frequently broken chain to feed ammunition and used magazines to carry out single shots, making the gun a "bolt-activated gun".
The K3 light machine gun can also be fed with magazines, perhaps this will reduce the failure rate,
Attempts by front-line troops to switch back to M60 machine guns may not solve the problem. Although the reliability of the M60 machine gun is higher, there is a general lack of spare parts for the old guns in stock, and they stop firing after a few bullet chains. There were strong calls for the troops to replace their machine guns, and there were also calls from officers to end the pirated K3 light machine guns and use genuine products (M249 machine guns were purchased from Belgium).
Hitchhike with aviation machine guns
Machine guns are the most indispensable support firearms for infantry companies, and the South Korean military top brass is not unaware. According to an assessment report by the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Korea, the average number of rounds fired (MRBS) caused by the failure of the K3 light machine gun is between 7 and 50 rounds, which is much lower than that of the M240 general-purpose machine gun (more than 2,900 rounds for MRBS) and M60 machine gun (846 rounds for MRBS), and is on the same level as the Indian INSAS rifle and the British L85 rifle.
Indian INSAS rifles
However, the ROK military's top leadership has always been dominated by the inertial thinking of the Cold War, and the focus of military spending has been poured into the research and development of heavy weapons such as aviation, armor, and artillery, while infantry tactics and weapons have not been taken seriously. The K3 machine gun has been in operation for 30 years, and although its performance is aging and its life is coming to an end, it has not seen any upgrades. The South Korean military has shown little interest in popular tactical guides, tactical sights, thermal imagers for guns, silencers, new materials and ammunition.
During the 2003 Iraq War, then-South Korean President Roh Moo-hyun sent a 3,200-strong contingent of South Korean troops to northern Iraq to carry out reconstruction and medical support missions. The small unit was attacked by local armed men during a patrol. The South Korean machine gunner recalled that his K3 light machine gun fired only 16 rounds and could no longer fire. Fortunately, another 40mm K4 grenade launcher in the convoy managed to suppress the opponent and let the small unit get out of trouble.
The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have made the South Korean military's stance of contempt for light weapons begin to loosen somewhat. South Korea, which is 70% mountainous, has a lot in common with Afghanistan's highland environment. In mountainous combat, small-caliber light machine guns have a shortened effective range, weak penetration, and poor lethality, and require a 7.62 mm or 12.7 mm machine gun to suppress an opponent hiding behind a boulder.
In 2006, the Ministry of National Defense of the Republic of Korea allocated $1.2 billion to the Korea Defense Research Institute and the Korea Aerospace Corporation to develop a new generation of general-purpose helicopter (KUH-1 Eagle). The Army Aviation Corps made it clear that the "Eagle" should also have the same powerful airborne self-defense firepower as the US "Black Hawk" helicopter without considering the old M60 machine gun.
Therefore, the ROK Ministry of National Defense made a decision: Directly order the M240 sample gun of the same style as the "Black Hawk" from the United States to fully support the research and development of a new helicopter! The ROK side also plans to import M240 machine guns in batches and fully equip them with the army aviation flight team -- this is really a priority treatment that cannot be enjoyed by the infantry detachment of the ROK army. The development of small arms supporting the KUH-1 helicopter has become a stepping stone by mistake. The new machine gun that the South Korean Army has been waiting for for 30 years has finally seen a glimmer of light. SNT Power then proposed a cheap alternative to the imported M240 machine gun - equipping the helicopter with its self-developed K12 aviation machine gun. Although the total number of machine guns equipped with the "Eagle" fleet is only a few hundred, the opportunities brought by the refitting of the army aviation have made the factory full of confidence.
U.S. Army M240 medium machine gun
During the period when the K12 machine gun was not yet fully finalized, SNT Power supplied a small batch of prototype guns to the Philippine Anti-Terrorist Force. This batch of more than 20 pre-production K12 guns specially for the Philippines completely demonstrates the original intention of the design team: in the helicopter airborne mode, the machine gun is mounted on the door frame, equipped with a ring anti-aircraft sight, and the D-grip trigger is fired; Tactical rails were provided above the receiver and on both sides of the handguard, and canvas soft bullet pouches for special operations units were used. The technicians of the South Korean Arsenal gave a live shooting demonstration for the Philippine police chief, and the machine gun fired 20,000 rounds of ammunition without serious failure, and successfully passed the assessment.
The Philippine military and police department received K12 machine guns from South Korea, which were partially equipped with holographic sights.
The Philippine military and police department received K12 machine guns from South Korea, which were partially equipped with holographic sights.
The K12 prototype gun is a very material design, but due to the combination of on-board erection and ground foot combat, the whole gun weighs more than 12 kg, which is twice the K3 light machine gun and 1.5 kg more than the old M60 machine gun. Rambo sweats when he carries it, so it's no surprise that it was rejected by the South Korean Ministry of Defense.
Conservative and stable retro design
After abandoning the initial "one gun, three shots" chaotic target, the K12 machine gun evolved into the K16 machine gun family, which included three sub-models: infantry, combat vehicle, and airborne. The construction principle of the three types is basically similar, but the functional details are different, and the main components such as the receiver are not completely common.
In general, the K16 series machine gun inherited the long-stroke mechanism of the gas conduction piston of the FN M249 machine gun, the bolt rotary locking, and the ammunition conveyor of the FNM240/249 machine gun. The receiver part of the gun body is stamped and spot welded with thin steel plates, and the receiver cover is made of aluminum alloy, and the upper side of the gun is equipped with an integrated Picatinny guide and a detachable mechanical sight. The left side of the receiver is equipped with a feed port, the right side is a shell ejection port with a dust cap, the pull handle can be folded, and the dimensional construction is consistent with that of the M60 machine gun.
This classic mechanism is a very simple and reliable design, so the total number of parts of the whole gun is controlled to about 140, and the maintenance complexity is significantly lower than that of the M60 machine gun. But the K16 machine gun did not copy the full design of the FN company. For example, FN's 4-raised tenon rotary bolt (similar to the AK bolt head) was changed to an AR-style 8-tenon bolt (the same as the Korean K2 rifle) by Korean designers, which is conducive to simplifying the processing process and maintenance procedures. The K16 machine gun also uses a simplified bipod similar to the FAMAS rifle for more reliable erection, eliminates the original magazine feed interface of Minimi, and also simplifies the ammunition indicator mechanism on the receiver cover.
All three models of the K16 series have a cold-forged barrel with a uniform length of 22-inch (559 mm) for side-by-side machine guns, so it is slightly longer than the national machine guns. The K16 machine gun has a quick-change barrel design, which needs to be replaced after 2 minutes of continuous firing or 200 rounds to prevent it from overheating and scrapping. It takes only 10 seconds to change the barrel by hand, and there is no need for insulated gloves like the M60 machine gun.
Installing the barrel of the K16 machine gun requires the soldier to hold the handle on the barrel with one hand and deflect it to the right to lock it
The muzzle of the K16 machine gun is equipped with a fork-type flame suppressor, and the South Korean army reported that the effect of reducing the muzzle flame at night is very good. The tail of the bolt reentry spring is equipped with a buffer part, which can effectively control the impact and muzzle jump of long burst fire. The theoretical rate of fire of the machine gun is 850 rounds per minute, which is higher than that of the M60 machine gun, but the recoil is relatively softer. The 7.62 mm machine gun can suppress individual soldiers at a distance of 800 meters or surface targets at a distance of 1,800 meters, and has an advantage over the K3 machine gun in terms of muzzle kinetic energy and range, but it also requires an additional 3 kg of physical burden.
The K16 machine gun can be equipped with the MGS machine gun thermal imager produced by EO Systems in South Korea, which is a dual-channel white light and thermal image scope with video output, but the overall size and weight appear to be on the high side.
The K16 machine gun can be equipped with an MGS machine gun thermal imager
Let's take a look at the pros and cons of the specific three sub-models.
The K16 basic version (formerly the K12C2 type) was identified as a squad machine gun for infantry detachments. As a result, the functions of the basic K16 were simplified, with the D-grip in vehicle mode being eliminated and the loose telescopic folding stock replaced by a more reliable non-collapsible stock.
The K16 basic model cut the annular anti-aircraft sight, and the tactical rails on both sides of the front handguard were simplified, leaving only a set of tactical rails on the top of the receiver, and the grooves around the barrel were cut to reduce weight, and the full weight of the machine gun was reduced to 10.4 kg. In addition, the NATO-standard tripod interface for the universal machine gun (which can be mounted on the M122 tripod as a heavy machine gun) is not available on this 7.62mm machine gun, so it can only be classified as a pure "beggar" light machine gun. In order to reduce the physical load of the infantry squad of the South Korean army, it is reasonable to simplify the treatment.
The K16E parallel machine gun (formerly K12C1) is designed for use in tanks and infantry fighting vehicles. Due to the small space inside the vehicle's fighting compartment, this side-by-side machine gun eliminated all the parts that were not needed for the installation of the vehicle: mechanical sights, bipods, handguards, triggers, grips, butts.
When the K1A1 tank is loaded, this side-by-side machine gun is installed on the right side of the main gun, and the gun body needs to be deflected 90 degrees clockwise, so that the ammunition supply port is on the top and the shell is thrown downward, so as to prevent the shells from flying and hitting the tank crew. The barrel of this machine gun could not be quickly replaced after loading and calibration, so the barrel was thickened and lengthened to prevent overheating and deformation during continuous fire. The muzzle gas piston has a forward exhaust vent, and the choking gunpowder smoke can be blown out of the car through the machine gun hole. The handle of the machine gun was also changed to a steel cable, and the tank crew needed to pull the bracelet and cable at the tail of the gun every time they changed the chain, so that the chamber could be opened and ready to fire.
The K16E side-by-side machine gun body is deflected 90 degrees clockwise to be mounted on the right side of the main gun of the K1 tank
The K16E parallel machine gun also inherited the original electronic firing mechanism of the M series and K series tanks, and the tank gunner controlled the machine gun fire through the handle. If this set of electronic firing fails, or the tank power supply is completely interrupted, the machine gun is controlled by a manual lever on the side of the electromagnetic mechanism to open fire. The design features of the K16E parallel machine gun are completely inherited from the M60E2 parallel machine gun, and the operation interface is consistent with that of the South Korean Army's M48 group gram and K1 series tanks, which is convenient for the troops to simplify the training of changing equipment.
The K16E parallel machine gun can also be mounted on a tripod for electronic firing
The K16D door machine gun belongs to the earliest sub-model of this series, so the configuration has not changed much compared to the K12 machine gun. The machine gun is equipped with a ring anti-aircraft sight for quick aiming: because the anti-aircraft sight has a higher aiming line, a small crosshair is added above the crosshair.
The K16D door gun is a modification of the K12 machine gun, and its grip and shoulder rest differ the most from the K16 basic model.
The K16D door machine gun is equipped with an annular anti-aircraft sight and a small front sight
Overall, the internal automatic principle and ammunition feeding characteristics of the K16 series machine guns are similar to the enlarged M249 machine guns, while the mature man-machine operation interface is more like the retro and continuation of the M60 machine guns. The M249 machine gun itself is a classic design, and the notoriety of the K3 machine gun is more due to the lack of experience of Korean engineers in the early years, the immaturity of materials and processes, the long service period, and the lack of later improvements. The factory learned these lessons and strengthened the design of the K16 machine gun to avoid repeating the mistakes of the past.
However, compared with the new generation of 7.62 mm machine guns such as the Belgian FN MK48, the Israeli Negev NG7, and the German HKMG5, the K16 series design style does seem quite old-fashioned and conservative, with few novel selling points, and no new materials such as titanium alloys, which shows that the South Korean military is still reluctant to invest more money in the weapons of the big soldiers.
German HKMG5 machine gun
You have to queue up for a new gun
As mentioned earlier, the South Korean Ministry of National Defense's equipment focuses on the air force, navy, and army mechanized units, which are also the units with the highest priority for K16 machine gun reequipment, while the infantry platoon, which relies most heavily on machine gun firepower and has the largest base, can only rest first.
The ROK military has begun equipping 300 KUH-1 Eagle helicopters with K16D door machine guns, one on each side of each helicopter. This type of utility helicopter is used to replace the aging UH-1 series and MD-500 series gunships, and as early as August 2015, the KUH-1 helicopter with the K16D experimental version (then the model K12 machine gun) has been on the western front of the Korean front. The South Korean Army's CH-47 heavy helicopters and UH-60P helicopters and the Air Force's HH-60 search and rescue helicopters have the same priority.
The KUH-1 helicopter is equipped with a K160 door machine gun on each side of the fuselage
Secondly, the active sequence of the South Korean armored forces includes 2,872 main battle tanks (the main force is more than 1,500 K-1/K-1A1 series tanks and 250 K-2 tanks), 466 K21 infantry fighting vehicles, and more than 2,300 armored personnel carriers. The performance of the M60E2 parallel machine gun used as auxiliary weapons of the ROK army's tank and infantry fighting vehicle is too old, and the troops report that the ammunition supply failure is frequent, which is basically just a decoration, and urgently needs to be replaced with the K16E parallel machine gun. In addition, the M60D door machine gun used by the armored corps will also be replaced with the K16D door machine gun. The machine gun rearmament may also cover more than 1,700 K55 and K9 self-propelled guns in the ROK artillery unit, as well as various types of small ships of the Navy and Coast Guard, which are currently equipped with M60D machine guns for close self-defense.
According to the level of combat readiness, the ROK army can be roughly divided into three categories: standing divisions, local divisions, and mobilization divisions. According to 2020 data, the ROK Army has about 30 standing divisions, each of which is about 85% of the full strength, and is responsible for front-line and coastal front-line combat readiness tasks. Each infantry squad has 8 soldiers in peacetime and 2 riflemen in wartime, so there are a total of 10 infantry in a squad at full strength. The ROK military was clearly influenced by the US military, and the heavy weapons group under the squad leader's charge was equipped with one light machine gun, four K2C1 rifles, and one 40 mm grenade launcher, while the five-member team under the command of the deputy squad leader was equipped with only five K2C1 rifles and one gun-mounted grenade launcher.
South Korean Army K2C1 assault rifle
The ROK Army's two Marine Divisions are almost identical to those of the Army, except that the second group is equipped with an additional light machine gun to replace the original one assault rifle. As a result, the squad equipment of the ROK Marine Corps has been strengthened compared to the rifle squad of the ROK Army.
There are about 30 local divisions (regional defense divisions) of the ROK army, which are mainly responsible for security functions, and their peacetime strength is only 40% of the full strength, and their rearmament priority will be one level lower than that of front-line troops. And the 16 mobilization divisions that are the shelf divisions have only 10% of the daily staff. It is likely that these infantry divisions will still use the old K3 LMGs or M60 LMGs.
In the best case, the ROK army would be issued with two light machine guns, eight assault rifles and two 40mm grenade launchers per squad. At present, the comprehensive firepower level of the ROK infantry squad (standing division) can only reach the level of the old US military establishment in 1985, and it is obviously one grade behind the latest US army squad and squad. This is due to the limitations of various factors such as the South Korean military's personnel, funding, philosophy, and military building priorities.
For comparison, the DPRK infantry squad consisted of 12 men (1997 data), and each squad was issued with one light machine gun, one RPG-7 rocket launcher, and eight AK series assault rifles (model 68 or Type 88). In the case of getting off the vehicle to fight, the light weapons of the ROK military squad do not obviously have the upper hand, and the K16 series machine guns and K15 light machine guns will have the opportunity to alleviate the dilemma of poor firepower. However, the K16 light machine gun weighed 50% more than the K3 light machine gun, and the gunners were physically taxed when marching on foot, so the squad was used to leaving most of the ammunition on personnel carriers or trucks.
The essence of the North Korean Type 68 assault rifle remains an improved version of the AK-47, which the DPRK has used for decades. It is still widely used at the moment.
In addition to the problem of physical burden, the maintenance and management of the ROK army's machine guns may still step on mines. South Korea is in a state of war all year round, and its compulsory military service system is very strict, and adult males are required to serve 21 months between the ages of 18 and 28, except for a few exemptions, and are not screened out. Machine guns are more complex than automatic rifles and require more professional maintenance, but the quality of recruits in the ROK army is uneven, veterans are frequently replaced, a large number of reservists are mixed, machine guns are rotated between training units, and new guns quickly become worn and mutilated "second-hand guns". If there is a lack of management and maintenance, insufficient sense of responsibility of personnel, and insufficient update of spare parts, the reliability of firearms will deteriorate, and it is difficult to escape the reputation of "a piece of scrap metal".